May 14th, 2009 beckel
I was going to continue my streak of Tommyknocker reviews but upon glancing over at New Glarus’ Organic Revolution sitting in my fridge and remembering a comment I had read earlier that day on The Captain’s Chair post about Hop Hearty IPA I decided it was time to see what a organic beer from New Glarus would be like. As I’m sure many of you know New Glarus is a regional brewery that only distributes within its own state of Wisconsin and pays a lot of tribute to things local and sustainable and apparently wanted to give the “purity” of organic a shot. This beer is bottle fermented and naturally carbonated…and carbonated it is, I had to stop during the pour as to not overfill my pint glass. Leaving me with a solid three fingers of pure white head that lasted for a few minutes atop this hazy, though translucent yellowish orange brew. Aroma is quite nice with slightly sweet pale malt and some moderately pungent bittering hops here and there to give this beer a well rounded smell. The flavor is really quite interesting, you will have to try it yourself to really understand. The malt has a clean but somewhat flat flavor that I have noticed in all of the organic beers that I have tried and have a hard time putting proper words to, it is not a bad thing, simply different. In addition to somewhat sweet malt flavors you get some solid bitterness from the hops as well as a very nice gentle grapefruit citrus flavor that works to balance the malt used in this beer. This is a flavorful Pale Ale that sticks to New Glarus’ tradition of making tasty easy to drink beers. This beer should be approachable for pretty much anyone though I find it to be one of their more intricate flavored brews. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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April 5th, 2009 beckel
With so many beers in my fridge to choose from I figured it was about time I consumed my bottle of Raspberry Tart from the humble folk of New Glarus Brewing. This bottle was picked up when I was in WI for a lovely bike race and I’m sure the memories of that icy lake will make the brew even more enjoyable, particularly as our lakes are currently working on melting. This beer pours a very dark color that almost appears black until you bring it to light where you can tell it really is a barely translucent dark raspberry color creating just over a finger of bright pink head that lasts for a few minutes. Aroma is full of raspberry, so much you may be inclined to think they use a syrup though their bottle assures us otherwise a bit of grain can be detected in the nose but it is overpowered by the fruit. The flavors of this beer are very similar to many other Framboise and largely just tastes of raspberry though It seems quite a bit less sweet than some which I appreciate. In addition to some nice tart raspberry flavors the medium body of this brew creates a really smooth and refreshing mouthfeel. With a 4% ABV this should be an approachable brew for anyone. Though I probably couldn’t drink a ton of this beer the sweet and sour contrasts keep my tastebuds currious and enjoying the brew. A good desert beer or for those of you into fruit beers. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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February 18th, 2009 beckel
I spent this weekend in small town Wisconsin with some friends to attend the best ever Valentines Day bicycle race. The race took place on the well frozen and slippery Lake Menomonie and required us to make it to 8 stops around the lake, how we chose to get there was up to us but I can assure you almost everyone fell at least; a lot. The warm temps (40 degrees) that we were blessed with the few days before the weekend were of no help as the rain that ensued melted the nice layer of snow covering the lake and exposed us to nothing but slick ice. People with wide tires and studs were in decent shape, however the bike I was riding lacked studs on the back tire and it was almost impossible to get traction. Though I had a grand time I’ve never walked my bicycle so much in a bike race nor fallen so many times. Sadly the worst time I fell I was just walking the bike and I wasn’t even drunk, maybe it just wanted to cuddle. Oh well, no visible bruises or blood so I think it went well. Many thanks to the organizers and for the hospitality and great community we were welcomed into. Though it was strange for me to ride in a city that has more or less a one street business district it was wonderfully refreshing to enjoy the freedom small towns offer. Though reminiscing is dandy this blog is about beer so I will cut to the chase. Today I will be enjoying another of the many brews I brought back from my trip and this time it is truly a Wisconsin beer. From the humble folk of New Glarus Brewing I have a somewhat less humble wax sealed 750ml bottle of their Wisconsin Belgian Red. Apparently each bottle of this ale contains an entire pound of local Door County cherries. Pretty impressive, guess I know what this beer is going to taste like. They seem to be very proud of this ale and I hope to be as well. Pours a very deep cherry color that is very bright when brought to light and only semi translucent but much darker when not in direct light. I managed to produce almost three fingers of playful light pink head with a slightly heavy pour that lasts for a few minutes. Smells largely of cherries, so much so it almost seems artificial but I have more faith in New Glarus than that. Aroma is rather wine like, slightly tart and carbonated, with a barely alcoholic sweet cherry wrapping up the smell. Reminds me a bit of a Italian soda. Holy fucking cherry! Upon my first sip you could convince me I am drinking pure cherry juice. Body is rather light though I feel a bit like im drinking carbonated yogurt, the mouthfeel just isn’t that thick or creamy. This beer tastes of almost nothing other than carbonated cherry, some sweet, some sour giving it a nice balance. You get a nice maltiness in the mouthfeel but you can’t really taste it, or at least not separate it from the massive cherry profile. This is certainly a fruity beer in the Lambic style but with a less heavy more Americanized body and mouthfeel. Not quite my style but I am enjoying sipping on it as I type this. With a 5.1% ABV and almost no alcoholic taste this should be a very approachable ale for those not used to beer. If you are a fan of Lambics, fruit ales or even just cherries in general you should enjoy this flavorful brew. Would be a great accompaniment for desert, particularly one with vanilla ice cream. New Glarus float anyone? Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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November 13th, 2008 beckel
Today we have the last of the New Glarus brews I was able to bring back from Wisconsin, at least I still have two left to enjoy. Hop Hearty is a solid IPA dry hopped with Cascade and East Kent Golding and my favorite New Glarus yet. When not poured gently this beer produces a number of inches of almost white head, most of which settles rather quickly aside from about one inch that lasts for a few minutes. Color is a nice mostly red amber color that is transparent when held to light but quite dark in hue. You can tell what the dry hopping did to this beers aroma immediately, many scents are present including some orange like citrus, sweet malt, and a nice balance of hop bitterness with barely any alcohol present. Drinking this beer fills you mouth with hops, as I sip this beer the citrus tastes more like grapefruit and the malt becomes more pronounced still finishing with a nice little bitter kick. Though this beer is 6.2% ABV it like all other New Glarus brews I have had, is remarkably drinkable with a light body and smooth mouthfeel. Though this beer certainly has very nice hop contributions the simple malt balance should make this beer a bit more approachable to those who are intimidated by the concept of IPAs, not to take away from the marvelous hop flavors of this beer. Once again another delightful ale from the land of New Glarus, Wisconsin. I wish I could purchase this beer more often but until the day they change their minds and distribute to their neighbors in Minnesota, I guess I will have to convince my roommate he needs beer on Sundays more often. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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November 5th, 2008 beckel
Today we continue with another beer from the New Glarus Brewing Company; Totally Naked. While in Wisconsin I was happy to find this seasonal beer; the first sentence on the label “Pure and crisp, this is a beer with nothing to hide.” intrigued me and I’m glad I didn’t pass it up. Though this is a lager I was still excited to see what it had to offer. I am happy to say I was not disappointed. This beer is a nice golden color that is completely transparent and produces close to an inch of head that it doesn’t retain for long. This beer smells largely of grains, corn and sweet light malted barley with only a touch of the German and Czech hops in the aroma. Tastes as it smells, of corn and barley. Light sweet malt flavors with a slightly bitter finishing taste, definitely a lager but still decently full of flavor for the style. Mouthfeel is heavier than one might assume but still rather light, body is light as well. This is definitely a drinkable beer and would be an acceptable, even if slightly heavy, session beer coming in at 4.2% ABV. Though I rarely drink lagers if this beer were available in my state I would likely regularly purchase it for a nice warm day in the outdoors. As the name suggests this beer really has nothing to hide, it is simple, light, and drinkable but still very flavorful and worthy of every sip. As with all of the other New Glarus beers I have had the opportunity to try this is an easy going quality brew, a lovely choice for a day of drinking. Obviously not the beer to satisfy your hop hunger but still a dandy drink. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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October 19th, 2008 beckel
Today we ventured to the land of Wisconsin because it is Sunday and our state has made the conclusion that is better to not accept out tax money on this beautiful fall day. Though there is little room in my fridge for this beer I will surely be writing about a number of beers you can not get in my fine state of Minnesota in the near future. I am ever so excited to get to the Dogfish Head and Stone but we will start with a brewery that I have enjoyed and been wanting to expand my knowledge of, New Glarus. Here we have Fat Squirrel a Nut Brown Ale that was inspired by all of the fat squirrels that the brewmaster Dan Carey saw on a walk home from the brewery one “springlike” winter day. Brewed with six different varieties of Wisconsin grown malt and hops from Slovenia, Bavaria and the Pacific Northwest this beers flavor profile should be unique. This beer pours a nice unfiltered roasted brownish red color. Producing about an inch of just off white head that settles quickly. Aroma is of toasted malts and a bit of hazelnut that transitions to a slight alcohol scent. This is surely a brown ale, the flavor is overwhelmed by lightly toasted malted barley of a number of varieties that creates a slight hazelnut hint to this very well balanced and flavorful beer. In addition to the roasted flavors a nice slight bitterness smooths out the taste of this beer in the finish. Like Spotted Cow this beer is very tasty and has a number of nice flavors but is also immensely drinkable having a light body and mouthfeel. Coming in at 5.8% ABV it has been easy to drink a number of these on this nice fall night. If you like a well balanced brown ale that has a robust toasted malt profile but is well balanced and easy to drink you will certainly appreciate this beer. Would likely be accompany a nice beef stew wonderfully. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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July 10th, 2008 beckel
This beer is not available in Minnesota, but my roommate delighted me when he returned from his cabin with a bottle of New Glarus Spotted Cow. This beer heading from Wisconsin is classified as a Cream Ale and is quite interesting. This cask conditioned secondary fermented ale has been enjoyed since before prohibition and has been enjoyed ever sense. Pours a light very yellow color that is quite transparent with very little head that fades rather slowly. Smells of pilsner malts, nicely sweet and sour at the same time. Mouthfeel is light and simple. Flavor is interesting, somewhat cirtus and carbonated though more is going on, you can almost taste the corn in this beer. A grand tribute to the Midwest. This beer reminds me a lot of a pilsner but it has a more complex flavor. Coming in at 4.8% ABV i would say this is a good session beer, though the professionals may disagree (looking for a lighter beer). This is a grand summer beer and would encourage anyone who ends up near Wisconsin to try it out. If you like simple beers that also have flavor this one is for you. Give it a shot and ride your bike.
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